Lane Kiffin May Ring in the New Year in New Orleans
Looks like Lane Kiffin could be spending New Year’s Day in New Orleans.
Former Ole Miss coach and Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, who recently took a position at LSU, is thinking about attending the College Football Playoff quarterfinal game. This matchup features the No. 6 seed Rebels (12-1) facing off against the No. 3 seed Georgia (12-1). Reports from Yahoo Sports suggest he’s really considering it.
Security measures are already being arranged for arrivals at the Caesars Superdome, the venue for the Sugar Bowl.
Officials from LSU and Kiffin’s team didn’t deny these reports when approached for comments.
This news surfaced following Kiffin’s appearance on ESPN during the coverage of the Kinder-Texas Bowl, where LSU faced No. 21 Houston. Kiffin didn’t coach during that game—Frank Wilson took over as the interim head after Brian Kelly was let go.
Kiffin switched to LSU last month, bringing along six of his assistant coaches.
He signed a seven-year deal with LSU that pays him $13 million per year. This agreement allowed offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. to return to Ole Miss and coach during the playoffs.
Kiffin mentioned he had kept LSU informed and also notified the playoff committee about his decision. It’s a bit unusual, really. Weis shared at Sugar Bowl media day that the situation felt strange: “You spend all day crafting a game plan, and then at night, you need to head over to the other side of the building. It’s just a hectic situation when we’re also trying to meet recruitment needs.”
Following the Rebels’ 38-19 Egg Bowl victory over Mississippi State on November 28, Kiffin made a social media announcement about his move to Baton Rouge.
Meanwhile, Ole Miss has promoted defensive coordinator Pete Golding to take over as permanent head coach.
The Rebels kicked off their playoff journey with a solid 41-10 win over Tulane, but the upcoming game against Georgia is expected to be a tougher challenge.
LSU turned its sights on Kiffin during its coaching search after parting ways with Kelly in October. During his six seasons in Oxford, Kiffin amassed a record of 55-19.
